What does Wisconsin's safer-at-home order mean for campgrounds?

Wisconsin is under a safer-at-home order until the day after Memorial Day, the unofficial start to summer and a popular weekend for camping in Wisconsin.

So what does the order mean for Wisconsin’s campgrounds? Can they open, and if so, who can go camping?

The extended order requires Wisconsin residents to stay at their place of residence, unless performing essential activities. The Wisconsin Department of Health Services is recommending people cancel or postpone all non-essential travel, and is strongly discouraging travel between private homes, including seasonal homes and rental cabins.

Campgrounds fall under the hotels and motels exemption of the order and can remain open for essential travelers or people for whom it is their primary residence. To engage in outdoor activity is also an acceptable reason for leaving your home under the order.

Many public campgrounds remain closed, including in state parks and the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest.

Some local health departments have ordered all campgrounds closed in their counties, in most cases to discourage non-essential travel to areas with limited health care infrastructure and older populations.

On April 17, the Oneida County Health Department issued just such an order, which is to remain in effect through May 16.

“There are a large number of campgrounds, which draw thousands of people from inside and outside of Oneida County. &mldr; Camping in Oneida County encourages non-essential travel,” the department said in a press release announcing the temporary closure.

Vilas County, which on March 20 issued a travel advisory recommending people who have second homes in the area do not visit, is planning to open its five public campgrounds on May 1, according to parks and recreation administrator Dale Mayo.

“We know a lot of the county residents are really going stir crazy right now, so this is a good thing,” he said, noting that “people need to be responsible” and continue to follow the state order on social distancing requirements and avoiding unnecessary travel.

Many private campgrounds are also opening, with additional procedures in place to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Jellystone Park in Caledonia plans to open May 1, with restrictions in place including limiting site occupants to one family household, not allowing non-camper visitors, and offering express check-in to minimize contact with staff.

"We agreed as a family that we would not open if we could not take every precaution possible,” said Bridget Bender, who co-owns the campground with her parents and two sisters.

Bender said they have at-risk family members and talked extensively about how they might safely open. They also talked to their local health inspector multiple times a week and another campground owner who opened a couple weeks ago to determine what was safe and allowed.

Bender said spring is normally a slower time of year for Jellystone, but it's even slower this year, with their current occupancy lower than last year. She said it seemed like most reservations were coming from within a half-hour radius of the campground, a change from normal years when they see more visitors from farther away, including northern Illinois, which is under its own extended stay-at-home order through May 30.

“One thing that does give me a lot of confidence about camping in general &mldr; camping does lend itself to be more of a socially distancing experience," she said, noting that you bring your own equipment and food and can easily stay within your unit and avoid close contact with others.

She also said that the other campground owner she talked to said their campers were doing a good job of maintaining social distance.

As a mother of four, Bender said she knows this period has been especially difficult for parents who might not have an outdoor outlet for their kids. With 200 acres at Jellystone, and enough staff to ensure people are maintaining social distance, she thinks they can offer an outlet.

"It’s a difficult time to be a parent who’s working” and there’s nowhere to go, she said. "This is hard for everybody."

“Every mom rejoices on a nice warm day when their kids can go outside and do anything,” she said.

While some of Jellystone's normal attractions will not be opening — including the pools, playgrounds, Jumping Pillow, mini golf, basketball courts and laser tag — families can still bike and walk around the campground, go fishing, and interact with the resort's costumed characters — Yogi, Boo Boo and Cindy Bear — from a safe distance.

Bender said if at any point they don't feel safe continuing operations, they will reassess.